


Five More Minutes

by Inell



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Action/Adventure, Friendship, Post-Hogwarts, Romance, The Quidditch Pitch: Leaving Feast
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-11-25
Updated: 2005-11-25
Packaged: 2018-10-26 07:23:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,181
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10782225
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Inell/pseuds/Inell
Summary: Hermione procrastinates and Theo is not at all romantic





	Five More Minutes

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Annie, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [The Quidditch Pitch](http://fanlore.org/wiki/The_Quidditch_Pitch), which went offline in 2015 when the hosting expired, at a time I was not able to renew it. I contacted Open Doors, hoping to preserve the archive using an old backup, and began importing these works as an Open Doors-approved project in April 2017. Open Doors e-mailed all authors about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact us using the e-mail address on [The Quidditch Pitch collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/thequidditchpitch/profile).

  
Author's notes: For the lovely and talented [](http://www.livejournal.com/userinfo.bml?user=odyssey01)[**odyssey01**](http://www.livejournal.com/users/odyssey01/) inspired by [this](http://www.livejournal.com/users/odyssey01/17517.html) art. I promised you Theo/Hermione, hon, so here it is! I hope you enjoy!  


* * *

Hermione stared at the lavish gate at the end of the stone path that led to the beautiful garden that was currently full of friends and acquaintances from work and school. She could hear the laughter, music and conversation from the tree she was leaning against and knew it was foolish to keep waiting. It was obvious he’d decided not to join her.  
  
To be perfectly honest, she wasn’t that surprised. It had been unfair of her to invite him here; to Molly and Arthur’s anniversary party. If the situation had been reversed and he’d invited her to a party that would be full of people who didn’t trust or like her, she might have refused to attend, too.  
  
No, that was a lie. Their relationship was new, certainly, but she’d have gathered her courage and gone with him if he’d have asked despite any anxiety such an idea might cause. Things between them had progressed from a polite nod in the halls at work to casual conversation during lunch, to a hesitant and almost shy query about plans on Friday night to something far more during the last six months, after all. If they were to have a future together, a real relationship, that included accepting old friends and adjusting to a variety of things.  
  
Hermione sighed and nervously played with the bodice of her red dress. It was modest compared to what most women would wear, but it was low-cut for her and she felt rather self-conscious about the cleavage that wasn’t totally hidden view as normal. She hadn’t worn it for him as he seemed to fancy her when she was wearing simple black robes at work that itched and covered every hint of skin as well as when she was wearing Muggle clothing that hinted at her figure but left quite a bit to the imagination.  
  
She’d worn the dress for herself, actually. It was demure but sexy and showed anyone who knew her that she’d changed. It was all small changes, granted, but she liked them. There wasn’t such a need to hide behind shapeless material and conceal hints of sexuality or sensuality. She didn’t know _why_ she’d always been so determined for people to somewhat forget she was a girl, but it had always made her feel rather awkward and silly for people to look at her as they had during the Yule Ball at Hogwarts so many years ago.  
  
Now, she felt far more confident and somewhat relaxed about the fact that she was somewhat pretty. Perhaps it had just taken someone looking at her as she normally was, with messy hair and ink stains on her fingers wearing baggy robes and reading spectacles, and see beauty for her to finally deal with her issues about such things. Wearing this dress was a start, she supposed, of becoming more comfortable with who she was now.  
  
Loud laughter distracted her from her thoughts and she again looked at the gate. Everyone she loved was down that path, people that had become her family during her years in this world. She knew it was a huge risk to invite him to attend this party with her. Most of her friends would be shocked to learn that she was in a relationship with anyone at all because it was rather well-known amongst their group that work was her priority.  
  
The very idea of her actually dating someone, much less the fact that things had progressed over the past six months to a far more intimate nature and often included breakfast after a sleepover, was something a lot of them would find surprising. The identity of her lover would probably not cause as much of a shock as the simple idea that she actually had one now.  
  
And those who knew her particularly well, who had questioned her for months about a smile she didn’t realize she had and had finally guessed she was involved, they knew who she was seeing and had had time to deal with any leftover childish issues of House rivalry so Ron and Harry would have been there for them if he’d accepted her invitation.  
  
“When you said we’d been invited to a party, I had no idea it was simply to hold up a tree while everyone else had fun. I always knew Gryffindors were an odd lot but this surpasses my notions of quirkiness by far.”  
  
Hermione turned quickly when she heard his amused voice behind her. As she turned, the heel of her shoe caught in the dirt and her eyes widened as she felt herself start to fall. Before she had time to gasp, he was there, his hand on her arm and the other behind her back. Her arms went around his waist as he kept her from falling. “You’re here,” she said softly as she regained her balance but kept her hands on his waist.  
  
“Of course I’m here. You’re here, after all,” he told her matter-of-factly with just a hint of the smugness that infuriated her at the same time it made her want to snog him senseless. “Where else would I be?”  
  
“That’s a rather sweet thing to say, Theodore,” she replied with just a hint of a smirk that she _knew_ made him want to snog her senseless. She raised her hand and brushed her fingertips against his forehead, pushing shaggy brown hair away as she gave him a thoughtful look. “Well, you don’t feel feverish so I suppose the sweet and rather romantic comment wasn’t said out of deliriousness.”  
  
“I can be sweet and romantic,” he defended with a light laugh as he brushed her hand away and put it back at his waist. “I just think such things are somewhat unnecessary and foolish not to mention usually contrived and insincere.”  
  
“As do I,” she reminded as she took a step closer to him. She played with a loose green string on his jacket and looked up at him. His arm rested across her shoulder, his fingers tangling in her thick hair as his other hand gently caressed her cheek. The sound of laughter and music reached them beneath the tree and she licked her lips before she smiled at him. “Besides, it’s not at all romantic to attend a party with people you don’t know or particularly like.”  
  
“Yes, well, this romantic thing won’t happen often so don’t get used to it, Granger,” he warned rather huskily as he lowered his head. His next words were whispered against her lips, warm puffs of breath that caused her fingers to tighten their grip on his jacket. “Have I told you yet how beautiful you look in that red dress?”  
  
“No, you haven’t,” she managed to murmur before his lips brushed against hers. She moaned softly as he deepened the kiss, all thoughts of the party leaving her mind as she lost herself in Theodore.  
  
Five more minutes.


End file.
